Americans today are watching their pennies and spending is going down on everything from entertainment to travel. Singles are feeling the crunch too and some are forced to drastically cut back on their dating budgets. For many, online dating is the perfect solution, as it's both cost effective and much more efficient than countless nights spent striking out at expensive bars and clubs.
It's a fact that singles are spending more time looking for love online, but now they're faced with financial restrictions when they want to take those romances offline and out on a date. No longer able to spend $100 - $200 on a date, many wonder how to plan a fun date without overspending on a leaner budget. In this new economy, we offer creative Top 10 dating ideas for under $25.
1) Halloween crept up on you this year? Take your date costume shopping!
Modeling naughty nurses outfits or hot fireman uniforms can help
break the ice without breaking the bank. Invest that $25 in a face
mask and support your candidate while you're at it. At some places,
Barack Obama, John McCain and Sarah Palin paper facemasks are $0.99!
And, if you play your cards right while shopping, you might just have
a date and a costume for your friend's masquerade party!
2) Outdoor ice skating rinks are opening up all over the Country and,
depending on the State, cost of admission plus skate rentals are less
than $15! Not only is it a romantic spot for a date, and great
exercise to boot, but it's also the perfect opportunity for some
sweet handholding! Meet your date after work to avoid the weekend
crush, and then grab a slice at your local pizza store for dinner.
3) Be whimsical with your date and visit a pumpkin patch, go apple
picking or don your favorite flannel shirt and go on a hayride.
Depending on the State, your $25 could go far and might even include
two cups of hot apple cider to warm you both up after that hayride.
And, if you time it right, you can catch a moonlit haunted hayride
complete with tales of the headless horseman. We recommend
http://www.pumpkinpatchesandmore.org/ to find a location in your
neighborhood!
4) Treat your date to a candlelit dinner and a movie without leaving
your apartment! Nothing is more romantic than working together to
make a nutritious and delicious meal. Chopping vegetables for a
salad, heating up the water for pasta and uncorking that bottle of
wine before settling down on the couch for some Must See TV is really
intimate! At most local supermarkets, you can pick up a bottle of
Indaba Merlot, a package of Italian salad mix from Dole, a box of
Barilla spaghetti and a jar of Muir Glen Organic Beef Bolognese pasta
sauce for less than $25.
5) Be philanthropic and spend a couple of hours with your date running or walking in a 5K for charity. Breast Cancer organization like the
Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure still has 3 more races left this
Fall and you and your date can either run or walk for a good cause.
If you decide not to go out for coffee afterwards, you can take the
$25 and donate it to the charity!
6) It's fall flea market season and with events held all over the
Country it's the perfect dating weekend spot! Since entrance to most
flea markets is free, spend that $25 on buying a nice trinket for
your date, or even indulge in funnel cake and piping hot corn on the
cob from the street vendor. The walk, cool air and interesting
outdoor shopping is a great activity for a date and gives you plenty
of opportunity to get to know each other!
7) Indulge your secret Dirty Dancing pottery fantasy with a little
pottery painting a deux! Flex your creative muscle at national places
like Color Me Mine where, for less than $25, two adults can pick out
pottery pieces, paint them together, and have the employees glaze it
and have it ready for pick up within the week! If the date goes
really well, you can schedule a second outing to pick up your
finished pieces.
8) Interested in gorgeous views of your City's skyline? Why not take
your date on a ferryboat ride before the weather gets too cold! No
matter day or night, you and your date will have a great time
enjoying the fall foliage while getting to know each other. And,
since many local ferries are either free or cost less than $5 for two
tickets, you can pick up two tall hazelnut hot chocolates and a
pastry for under $20 at your local Starbucks.
9) If NFL tickets are a little steep for your current budget but you'd
love to take your date to a football game, why not cheer on a local
High School team? Check out the football games in your neighborhood
and spend the $25 on a picnic lunch. If you don't have the time to
pack a picnic basket, hit up the game vendors for hot dogs and drinks
that are much less pricey than the ones at the stadium. Then spread
that blanket over your legs and cuddle while both you - and the
teams - go for the touchdown!
10) Are you both animal lovers? Take your date for a day at the local
petting zoo! Invest some of that $25 in food for the goats or horses
and take turns feeding them. Curious to know if this date has
relationship potential? Observing your date interacting with both the
animals and kids that will be at the petting zoo is a great way to
assess character and compatibility!
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